Clumping bamboos are generally
tropicals and are non-invasive. They grow in a habit
similar to bananas. The shoots emerge in a tight
or open habit – depending on the species.
Regardless of the degree of openness of each species’
clumping habit, none of the clumpers are considered
invasive. They are all well behaved and will not
spread wildly.
Tropical, clumping bamboos come in many sizes and overall forms. There
are different culm colors (some striated) and leaf sizes (some variegated).
With so many options, there are ideal varieties for nearly every application.
Choosing the right varieties for screening and hedging will solve privacy issues
better than any other plant material. Some of the ornamental bamboos make a
stunning landscape statement. Most varieties work well in a mixed tropical garden.

The tropical clumpers are not as frost tolerant
as the temperate runners so they are normally grown
in warmer climates. Many of the tropical clumpers
are more difficult to propagate then the runners.

Running bamboos send out underground
stems (rhizomes) from which the new canes will grow.
Running bamboos are more common and have a reputation
in the U.S. as being uncontrollable. Many U.S. gardeners
are familiar with the running bamboo species that
send out rhizomes traveling for several feet. These
are the culprits of bamboo’s bad reputation
among gardeners in the U.S.
Still ,with rhizome barriers or management techniques, the running bamboos
can be used effectively and beautifully in home gardens.

If you live in South Florida, make sure that the
“Black Bamboo” you buy is NOT Phylostachys
nigra. Mail order nurseries will sell it to you,
and it may be cheap, but it will burn up in our
summer heat.